As it’s been enough time since Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 dropped, players have had plenty of time to beat the Wall Crawler’s new journey. As there is a lot that happens over the story, it might be hard to keep track of it all. We have put together this story explainer with additional information players might be wondering. Also, it will be a helpful refresher in a few years when Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 has been announced.
What Happened After Miles Morales?
Spider-Man 2 doesn’t give too much information regarding smaller details since Miles Morales ended, but there are a couple of big things that lead into the future. The first is that following Peter’s vacation throughout that game, MJ wrote a book about Symkaria while he served as her photographer.
The second is that Aaron Davis (The Prowler) served his time in jail and got released on parole, seeking a new relationship with his nephew. Though he doesn’t appear in the story after Miles collects all of his tech, he is available as a potential future ally.
What Happens in Spider-Man 2?
Spider-Man 2 picks up 10 months after the events of Miles Morales. Peter has just gotten a job teaching at Miles’ school, Brooklyn Visions. However, Sandman rampages through New York City on his first day, and his absence is noticed by the school’s principal, who promptly fires him once things have settled.
Kraven and the Hunters
On his defeat, Sandman warned Peter and Miles that something was coming. That something was Kraven and his band of hunters that reveal themselves when they attack a boat that is transporting Scorpion and Mr. Negative out of The Raft. While both villains are kidnapped, Kraven only ends up killing Scorpion.
Shortly after this, Harry Osborne returns from his treatment and offers Peter new employment at a foundation he created in memory of his mother and Aunt May. The Emily May Foundation seeks to improve the world, from supporting pollinating insects to helping propagate better plants/crops to revolutionizing certain forms of transportation. All of this with the goal of “healing the world.”
Around this time, Miles gets a call from MJ informing him that hunters are targeting Black Cat and asks him to check in on her. After checking multiple safehouses that reveal she’s on the run, Miles tracks her to the Sanctum Sanctorum, where she bursts out with a mysterious artifact. He helps her escape into Paris to rescue her girlfriend and attempts to use the artifact to find Martin Li, only for that exact moment for Doctor Strange to take the artifact back remotely.
The Black Suit
To celebrate the foundation, Harry, Peter, and MJ return to an amusement park they enjoyed together when they were younger. However, the hunters show up to kidnap Tombstone, a reformed villain working at one of the attractions. They thwart his kidnapping, but a massive catastrophe occurs on the rollercoaster, causing it to collapse. At the last second, Harry swoops in to save Peter, covered in a strange black suit.
While they didn’t get Tombstone, MJ informs Peter that Dr. Connors (the doctor responsible for Harry’s recovery and black suit) has gone missing. This new development takes priority, with MJ putting all her investigative skills to work trying to find him. While snooping on a Hunter transport, she is accidentally locked inside and taken to the Hunter base, which is a closed-down zoo.
Unfortunately, Harry and Peter are too late in coming to her rescue, as Kraven has already injected Dr. Connors with the chemicals to turn him into the Lizard. In an ensuing fight, Peter is fatally stabbed by Kraven and dies while Harry and MJ watch. For unknown reasons, Harry’s suit transfers to Peter at that moment, reviving him.
Harry and Peter then return to the Foundation to begin synthesizing a cure for Dr. Connors so that he can remove the suit from Peter and return it to Harry, as he is ailing without it. However, Hunters attack Emily May at that moment, destroying the building.
The Lizard
Peter heads to Dr. Connors’ house for further help finding him, only to discover he just missed the Lizard. This puts him head to head with the Hunters as he seeks out a fleeing Lizard, which causes Peter to become much more aggressive and angry at their interference. He manages to cure the Lizard and turn him back into Dr. Connors. Upon coming back to human form, the doctor warns him the suit is a living organism, a Symbiote, and it must be destroyed. As he is under the Symbiote’s influence, Peter refuses.
That night, Peter returns home and collapses into bed, instantly falling asleep. The Hunters arrive to seek him out under Kraven’s orders. When MJ notices, Peter is suddenly gone and begins tearing through the neighborhood seemingly on autopilot. With Miles’ help, she corners “Peter” in a construction tunnel while Miles for himself. She wakes Peter up, but the Hunters kidnap Miles.
Harry quickly weakens while Peter grows increasingly angry, lashing out at Rio Morales when she asks him to find Miles. Elsewhere, Miles is being held by Kraven and is forced into a fight to the death with Martin Li. Instead of killing him, he helps him escape to deliver a message to Peter about his location.
Peter arrives and has a massive showdown with Kraven, nearly killing him before Miles intervenes and fights Peter himself. Throughout the fight, Miles convinces Peter to relinquish the suit as it only makes him more isolated and insane the longer he wears it. His words finally reach Peter, and he removes the suit, letting Miles capture it.
Venom
Upon returning the captured Symbiote to Harry, Peter tells him they can’t keep using it, and instead, they truly must destroy it. Lashing out at the betrayal, Harry assists the Symbiote in breaking out, and it covers him instead, turning him into a massive monster called Venom. Venom rampages through Oscorp, gets outside despite security protocols, and encounters Kraven. The two fight, and Kraven dies at the hands of Venom when it bites his head off.
In this new form, Venom exhibits more extreme abilities than before, spreading itself to infect other people with different versions of the comic book Symbiotes. Soon enough, the entire city is infected, and Dr. Connors calls to let Peter know he still has some Venom inside his body from wearing it too long. After being swarmed, he is overtaken by the Symbiote before being saved by Martin Li and Miles.
Anti-Venom
Thanks to Martin Li’s powers, Peter regains consciousness in a new white version of the Symbiote suit. This version is called Anti-Venom, as it can easily counteract and defeat Symbiotes. Miles and Peter become aware that the power is emanating from the combined meteorite that Venom took from Oscorp. They quickly devise a plan involving MJ to take it and destroy it using the Emily May particle accelerators.
While MJ and Miles handle the meteorite at the Foundation ruins, Peter battles Venom at their old high school. Eventually, the fight takes them to the Foundation as Venom fights Peter and Miles for the meteorite. During the fight, Harry takes enough control to let Peter know he needs to kill him. Otherwise, Venom wouldn’t stop until they are all dead.
Peter uses his Anti-Venom powers to grant Harry his wish, and he dies right as the meteorite is destroyed, removing its hold on the city. Using his powers, Miles restarts Harry’s heart and resurrects him. They both take Harry outside to the waiting ambulance. Not knowing the whole story, Norman Osborn blames the Spider-Men for his son’s condition.
With the Symbiotes gone, life somewhat returns to normal. Peter moves some of the Foundation tech he could salvage into the garage and restarts the Emily May Foundation to resume the work Harry wanted to do.
Why Is Kraven Hunting Super Villains?
During a mission in which Peter infiltrates a party thrown by the Hunters, he gets to snoop around Kraven’s study. He finds a few pill bottles, all for “late-stage chemotherapy.”
This is the first hint that Kraven is sick, but further story dialogue and Hunter Base audio logs reveal that he is dying and wants to die on the ultimate hunt against a foe worthy of taking his life.
Why Does Peter Turn Evil?
The suit is a living, breathing organism, and it tunnels into Peter’s body, implanting itself. Seeing as it has its own goals, it infiltrates his brain to link up better, ensnaring Peter in what it wants. It is essential to know that the Symbiote is a killer, so it influences Peter to be more confrontational and enraged.
This is an interesting parallel to Dr. Octavius’ story in the first game, as his mind was corrupted by the invasive technology controlling the additional arms.
Is Harry Venom?
While for a good portion of the story, it is Peter wearing the black suit, it truly only becomes Venom when it takes over Harry near the end.
Though Venom does have his own goals, he entwines those with Harry’s to cultivate their symbiotic relationship and make the two one being. For the most part, Harry is Venom, though it does feel like Venom is simply using everyone at every point in the story.
Does Peter Die?
It is brief, but Peter does die due to the stab wound inflicted by Kraven.
But this is his only death. Besides this mishap, he makes it to the end of the game without any problems. Things get a little hairy after the High school fight when Venom carries a limp Peter around by the neck.
Does Peter Retire as Spider-Man?
I don’t think it’s a full retirement, but the story does end with Peter taking a break from being Spider-Man and handing Miles the reins. It’s also possible Spider-Man 3 will start with the revelation that Peter hasn’t been Spider-Man this whole time and only dons the mask once whatever craziness pops off.
Who Is Cindy?
The girl seen at the end, introduced by Rio’s boyfriend Albert, is clearly supposed to be Cindy Moon.
In the comics, Cindy Moon is part of the Spider family under the name Silk. She gets her powers from the same spider that bit Peter Parker, as she was also there that day. This origin story likely won’t stick, as it appears she is the same age as Miles, if not a little younger.
Possible Future Villains
Several possibilities are shown throughout the game regarding villains we might see in a third game.
Green Goblin
In a scene at the end with Norman looking over Harry in a hospital bed, he pulls out his phone and orders whoever picks up to prepare the “G-Serum.” Though, it is unclear if it is to be Normal or Harry that will become Green Goblin. Norman also visits Dr. Octavius in The Raft to find out the identities of the Spider-Men.
Carnage
The whole subplot with The Flame ends with their leader escaping as Wraith chooses to save Peter instead. She says she will do more research using his many aliases and mentions an important one: Cletus Kasady. That is the villain who is paired with the Carnage Symbiote in the comics.
Doctor Octopus
During the visit with Dr. Octavius, he is writing something. When Norman asks about it, he says it is the “final chapter.” This is way too ominous not to be a hint that he’ll return as an enemy in a third game.
Considering all the crazy things that happened in the Spider-Man 2 story, it’s hard to see how they could top it in a third. If you’re still wrapping things up in New York City, check out our links below for a little extra help.